Maintenance of older, bushy Pomegranate trees/bushes

Question

I recently moved into a place in Moab, Utah, and I have five pomegranate trees that were planted before I moved into my property; I think they are several years old, and I believe they have never been shaped or pruned. I was told that they started bearing several small fruit last year about September. I don’t know if I should prune them or not. There are five that appear to be too close together and are very bushy with lots of established suckers. Should I prune them like they are trees (lopping off any inward growing and crossing branches and removing all suckers)? The bushes (I’ll call them bushes vs trees) have more suckers than they do thicker, central branches and I want to remove anything that is taking energy away from the tree, but I don’t want to over prune.

Please, help! How much is too much to prune back an older pomegranate bush once it’s set as a bush rather than shaped like a tree? I pruned one, but am afraid it was too much to cut away. Also, how far apart should they be? And when is it too late to transplant them? If it’s possible to move them, what’s the best time of year to move them, and do you have any good resources/recommended reading/advice on how best to dig them up and reestablish them?

Thanks so much for any help and offered resources, additional reading material, etc.!

Answer 1

These articles will help you with pruning and care.

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/pomegranate/pomegranate-tree-pruning.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/pomegranate/pomegranate-in-a-pot.htm